India wraps up 2 GW solar tender with $0.032/kWh tariff
India has concluded a 2 GW solar tender with a tariff of $0.032/kWh. The winning developers can set up projects anywhere in the country, as long as they are connected to the interstate transmission system (ISTS).
Autonomous robots gaining traction with solar installers
Sarcos Robotics and Terabase Energy recently announced key business developments, underscoring how installation robots are increasingly moving from test centers to the field.
German research institute unveils 99.74% efficient power electronics for solid-fuel heat pumps
Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics (IAF) has developed an ultra-efficient circuit topology for voltage converters with an electrical efficiency of 99.74%. The tech could considerably raise the coefficient of performance for electrocaloric heat pumps and the scientists are now considering components based on semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) for higher power density and efficiency.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: January-June solar installations hit 78.42 GW
China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) says the nation installed 78.42 GW of solar in the first six months of this year, bringing it to nearly 470 GW of cumulative installed PV capacity by the end of June.
Germany deployed 6.26 GW of solar in H1
Germany installed more than 1 GW of new PV systems in June alone. Its cumulative installed PV capacity hit 73.8 GW at the end of the first half of this year.
US federal agencies urged to tap 25 GW of solar potential on canals
A large US environmental coalition has signed a letter to support solar deployment on 8,000 miles of federal, open-air canals.
Solar production drops as rare summer storm lashes Netherlands
In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, presents the solar irradiance data it collected for northern Europe in the first week of July. The data show that an unseasonal storm created by a strong low pressure system moving across from England into the North Sea had a strong impact on solar power generation in the Netherlands and Denmark.
Tesla adds ‘Charge on Solar’ feature to Powerwall batteries
Tesla owners can select a feature in an app to set their Powerwall batteries to solely charge their vehicles on excess stored PV capacity.
Transnational grid across Sub-Sahara Africa may help spur renewables deployment
An international research group has proposed to build a Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA) central grid across 12 countries in order to reduce energy poverty. The proposed transmission line would touch Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, Mozambique, and South Africa.
EU electricity market deal positive for renewable energy PPAs
The European Union needs to secure a final agreement on its new electricity market design by the end of this year.
